What's Next For Boscov's After Retail Titan's Death

Al Boscov is photographed during an interview at his Boscov's department store in Reading, Pa., Thursday, Dec. 18, 2008.

Carolyn Kaster
/ AP

Albert Boscov was the public face of a department store chain he built from a single corner store in downtown Reading, Pennsylvania, to a regional powerhouse with locations in seven states and more than $1 billion in annual sales.

After his death Friday at age 87, Boscov leaves behind a chain with devoted customers and a tremendous amount of civic goodwill. But the century-old company still faces the headwinds that are buffeting the industry. Analysts say Boscov's long-term prospects are uncertain.

Few department stores have been more closely identified with their owners than Boscov's was with Albert Boscov, a cheerful executive who roamed the store aisles and was intimately familiar with his merchandise.

His nephew, who took over as CEO in 2015, says Boscov's will remain in the family.

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That could become more common as artificial intelligence continues to creep into our mobile shopping experiences.

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In a lab at Reading Area Community College, 18-year-old Benjamin Eckenrode stands in front of a blue wall rigged with pistons, pumps and gauges. It’s a pneumatic troubleshooting system, designed to teach students how to identify and solve problems with manufacturing equipment.

“This piston is supposed to go down and actually pick up a ball, but it is not,” he said.

Eckenrode’s assignment is to figure out why the piston isn’t moving. The high school senior is taking this college class as part of a program to prepare more young people for careers in the technical trades.

The San-Francisco-based company says it will begin operating in the seven-county region surrounding Pittsburgh, including Washington, Greene, Westmoreland, Indiana, Armstrong and Butler counties Thursday evening.

The expansion also includes DuBois, Gettysburg, greater Williamsport, Johnstown and Altoona.

Company officials said the service will now cover 90 percent of residents in the state.

Uber allows people to use a smartphone app to book and pay for a car service.